Question:
What is the deal with the Gas and BMs smelling so bad, that you will suffer humility?
I'm having surgery within the next week, and I keep hearing of these awful gas and bm stories where relationships have been broken, or public humiliation was encountered, and it's freaking me out! who's gas or bm's don't smell bad? I'm sorry for sounding so graphic, but hey, I'm single and need some support and advice about this... — [Anonymous] (posted on February 26, 2001)
February 26, 2001
I think it may have something to do with which procedure (proximal, distal
etc) that you have. I have heard the same things. But I am 6 weeks post op
and eating normally. While I do have alot of gas, it is not killer. Neither
are my BM's. But another friend of mine has killer ( you need a gas mask)
gas and killer BM's.
— Cindy K.
February 26, 2001
I can't give you any advice because I have the same fears. My gas and BM's
smell bad enough to make me want to leave the room! What am I gonna do if
they get worse?
— K T.
February 26, 2001
I'm not sure where you heard these stories or which WLS type you're
referring too or planning on having.. But I can tell you I personally have
never had that problem.. I don't have to take anything to control gas or
smelly BM's as some report that they do with more distal procedures.. I
agree with the answer below that it really depends on how distal you are..
I'm a Fobi with a long limb proximal some call that a medial bypass and I
have absolutely no problems. I have a BM about every other day to every
third day and the smell and texture is quite normal and ordinary and I do
nothing special to control it..
— Victoria B.
February 26, 2001
It does'nt last long and then your back to normal.
For me about 3 weeks.
— Mike H.
February 26, 2001
For the first time in my life, my s**t don't stink! I think it has a lot
to do with the diet I'm eating. I can't tolerate fatty foods and so I
don't have the gas and bms usually associated with eating them. I drink my
protein drink everyday and that doesn't do anything either. I also believe
that every body is different and we all tolerate things differently and
smelly things are a sign that those foods might not be digested as well as
other foods. Just my opinion, I am not a medical doctor.
— Lisa B.
February 26, 2001
I had the distal almost 2 months ago and gas and BM's are no worse than
before surgery. Less frequent too.
— Twila S.
February 26, 2001
I recently had the BPD/DS and I do experience some gas in the evening but
nothing out the ordinary as far as odor and by the way...my BM's never did
smell like roses. :)
— TJSmith
February 26, 2001
I am the Queen of Gas...at my job, it went so far as the Plant Manager, red
in the face from embarrassment, asked me if he could install an exhaust
vent in my office to keep it from wafting down the hallways. Fortunately,
I don't smell a thing, but others have described my air biscuits as a
combination of mustard gas and pulpy roadkill in Texas during the summer.
However, I can assure you that it is totally dependent on what I eat
(bagels are the WORST!) and any other stuff that creates foamy, loose
stool, such as Thousand Island Dressing on salad with a side of cole slaw.
I am now 9 months post op. The worse time was between 3-7 months when I
was introducing new foods and experimenting. Humiliation is highly
overated. I did have two bouts, one when the company President yelled from
the staircase down the hall "LIGHT A CANDLE, GIRL!" But given
that usually I am a dominating, bossy wench, it was probably good for my
character development and certainly no worse than the utter humiliation of
waddling through life at 500 pounds. By the way, I yelled back to the
company President: "IF YOU LOVED ME, THAT WOULD SMELL LIKE
ROSES!"
They did install an exhaust fan (RIGHT OVER WHERE MY BUTT IS IN MY CHAIR,
TOO!) and that did help, as did candles, matches, eating cholorphyll and
most importantly, simply eating those foods that I want, that I know cause
gas on the weekend. Think of it like how you currently plan eating onion
chilidogs with baked beans....GOOD LUCK!
— merri B.
February 26, 2001
Hi: I'm 16 or 17 months and 170 lbs out of lap BPD/DS surgery (the one
that people like to spread horror stories about foul smelling gas) and
after the first week or two, have never had any problem with gas or bms.
In fact my bathroom habits have greatly improved since surgery. I have one
or two bms immediately upon rising, and generally that's it for the day. I
bought 6 kinds of ozium pre surgery in anticipation, and I still have em
all full for non-WLS guests in my house. I have found my gasiness
increasing in the afternoon (non-stinky variety), but have discovered that
it is related to my going back to drinking a soda on afternoon break. Even
if this were not all true, I made a conscious decision to go for surgery as
I knew the humiliation and despair of morbid obesity was worse than
bathroom odors could be!
— Jill L.
February 26, 2001
I have not had either of these problems since surgery.
— Lisa B.
February 27, 2001
Obviously, from the previous responses, you will see that it varies greatly
from person to person -- and even the type of surgery doesn't seem to play
into this. I had RNY, I'm almost 11 months post op, and neither have ever
been a problem.
— Cindy H.
February 27, 2001
I am a Open RNY distal.....
Yes my BM's are stinky....I use a bathroom as far away from the
rest of the family as possible and use sprays..
If going out on a social funtion I am very careful what I eat..
nothing know to cause gas ...beans, brocolli etc
and Yes passing my tooting( Farts) are bad but you can hold them
in when in the company of others I usually step out side..
and that usually only happens when i eat the wrong foods
I find when eating dairy( I am lacotse intolerant) the gas is pretty
bad...
But seriously Folks this is not really a huge problem
I am 4 months Post Op and eat pretty much what I want and have
few Bowl Movements ..when I eat high Fat content foods i do have
more frequent BM's but its worth the price to never have to worry about
regaining the weight
Trust me...its really not that bad and is controlable
Kathy
— Kathleen M.
February 27, 2001
I had a distal rny 101/2 months ago. I have significantly LESS gas now than
I did pre-op, possibly due to the change in my diet. However, certain
foods, especially beans DO give me some horrendous gas with accompanying
bad odors. This is largely controllable, tho. My bms DO smell BAD. I must
admit this truth. :) Now, it wasn't always pleasant before, but they are
DEFINITELY worse now, as my house mates will attest. I keep air freshener
on hand always & am as careful as possible about when & where I use
the facilities. I will be sharing a hotel room with FOUR other ladies in a
few weeks & am a little concerned. I plan to see if I can't find a
stronger, possibly medical supply- type odor remover & will try to find
the one mentioned in the previous posts. It is a concern with me, but still
fairly minor in the overall scheme of things. I am very happy with my
results & don't regret my choice at all. I've lost 160# so far, about
30 to go. It was WAY worth it to me.
I suspect the first half of this posted by accident, if so, I apologize for
my careless fingers... Kathy
— Kathy W.
February 27, 2001
A couple of months after surgery I started having foul gas and figured out
I was lactose intolerant. My lactose intolerance has passed (I'm now 11
months postop) and now the only thing that really gives me potent gas is
more than a couple of bites of something sugary.
— Kellie L.
February 27, 2001
>but you can hold them in when in the company of others. I usually step
outside.
I tried that too, but mine always followed me back in.
— [Anonymous]
February 27, 2001
Within 2 weeks post-op I was trying all sorts of proteins and finally
decided that Whey tasted the best to me, but WHOA..P-U!...my two cats &
I ran outside shortly after I drank the shake to get away from the putrid
gas. The gas finally subsided. I'm 7 wks. post-op, RNY open and my bm's are
not stinky.
— [Anonymous]
July 20, 2001
awating surgery:
I read on another site to ask your "health store" there are pills
you can take to make your breath and "toots" prettier ha
good luck, Jacki
— Jackiis
July 20, 2001
I had RNY 7 months ago -- no problem with smelly gas or bms. Guess it is an
idividual thing.
— [Anonymous]
Click Here to Return